MMA Gym Martial Arts

Mixed Martial Arts

Following the decline of pankration (MMA) in Greece, which coincided with the rise of the Roman Empire, mixed martial arts (MMA) fell by the wayside in favor of other combat sports. Sports such as wrestling and boxing became the dominant forms of combat sport in the West, while traditional martial arts swelled in popularity in Asia. This remained the case for centuries until 1925 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, when the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA) experienced a revival from a peculiar source.

Today, the UFC’s pay-per-view buy rates are rising quickly, as are ticket sales at their live gates. Fighters now spend five to six years fighting in smaller events, building their resumes to compete in the big show. Fans continue to flock to the sport looking for the excitement and intensity of the purest form of one-on-one competition on the planet today.

Kick Boxing

The term kickboxing is a somewhat generic one used to cover the combination of several different striking or stand up fighting styles that fall within the classification of sport martial arts. Though the term kickboxing was specifically initiated in Japan and evolved from full contact karate, its history and roots are in many ways tied to the Thailand martial art of Muay Thai Boxing as well. The sport of kickboxing often takes place in a ring where combatants, depending on the style of kickboxing being practiced, may utilize kicks, punches, elbow strikes, headbutts, knee strikes, and/or throws against one another.

Generally, practitioners use gloves and kickboxing competitions take place in a ring, as it is primarily a sport martial art. A branch of kickboxing called cardio kickboxing, which utilizes the use of kickboxing style strikes almost exclusively for fitness purposes, has also become quite popular in recent times.

Boxing

All sports have the potential of becoming about much more than athletics, transforming into symbols of a culture’s and country’s mood, insecurities, conflicts, and hopes. But perhaps no sport lends itself to this kind of transposition more than boxing. For the purity of boxing gives it the nature of a blank canvas; there is no playing field or special equipment; the rules are few and easy to understand. There is but two men, facing off with nowhere to go, with only their fists and their determination to decide their fate. Thus boxing easily becomes a metaphor for debates over our values: good vs. evil, immigrant vs. nativist, bravado vs. humility, intellect vs brute strength.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

The overall fighting strategy of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is designed to equip a physically smaller or weaker individual with an effective method of defending against a larger and stronger attacker. When applying BJJ techniques, leverage is paramount, as leverage is the secret to the amplification and most efficient use of force.BJJ also has the most developed methods of fighting while on one's back, a position weaker fighters will often find themselves when attacked. The innovations of the Gracie family, most notably by grandmasters Carlos and Helio Gracie, and continuing with BJJ fighters today, through constant testing and refinement in the crucible of actual fights, has resulted in this unique style of Jiu Jitsu.

Muay Thai

In the history of Muay Thai, Muay Thai has always been a sport for the people as well as a military fighting skill. In all its golden ages, the people have trained and practiced the sport whether they were King or commoner. It was a part of the school curriculum right up to the 1920's when it was withdrawn because it was felt that the injury rate was too high.

Wrestling

The history of wrestling can easily be traced back to its roots in the Mediterranean. The Ancient Greeks and Romans are credited with developing a number of different styles of wrestling that are still in use today. The sport is easily one of the most primitive sports that can be easily dated back to some five thousands years ago. Ancient Greeks formed the sport out of necessity as it was a means of training and developing soldiers into warriors. They used it in hand to hand combat which also doubled as a means of cardiovascular exercise. Ancient drawings and hieroglyphs mark the walls of some of the great Greek Palaces and stadiums with pictures of ancient wrestlers. Wrestling has come a long way from its early roots but has kept in tact a number of the same techniques and strategies that made it popular five thousand years ago. The sport has seen a recent explosion in the MMA or mixed martial arts field which features a combination of a number of wrestling fields.